Field of the Invention
This invention relates to wheel guards or skirts for the wheels of a machine or appliance such as a portable welding machine, hospital appliance, etc., intended to clear obstacles such as electrical wires, cables, or debris from the rolling path of the wheels thereof so as to prevent obstruction of the rolling movement of the wheels.
Description of the Related Art
Many machines, such as portable welding machines, are mounted on a pair of caster wheels at the forward end thereof and a pair of conventional wheels at the rearward end thereof. In some welding machines, a pair of caster wheels are mounted at the forward end of the welding machine and a pair of caster wheels are mounted at the rearward end of the welding machine. In many welding facilities, the floor thereof is littered with electrical wires, cables, etc., which impede the movement of the wheeled welding machine. Further, many appliances such as hospital carts, IV supports, etc., suffer the same problem.
Attempts have been made to reduce or eliminate these problems. However, the prior art devices are believed to be difficult to mount on the wheels and do not perform satisfactorily. Further, the prior art devices are not usable in many situations such as where the caster wheels have locking devices associated therewith. Further, in some situations, the prior art devices cannot be used when the associated wheel is positioned closely adjacent the welding machine, appliance, etc. Additionally, some of the prior art devices are difficult to install and are difficult to service or remove. Even more particularly, many of the prior art devices are ineffective.